A Trip Through Time
by Rexcaliburr
Summary: Christmas break has rolled around for the mercenaries of Teufort, and the former botkilling team compromised of four REDs, two BLUs, and two escaped robots of Grey Mann have decided it's time to take a vacation and hang out once more as friends. This focuses on the lighthearted adventures featuring characters from The Good, The Bad, & The Robotic, as well as Fear Is What Drives Us.
1. Teufort's Winter Break

**A/N. Hello! It's me, and I'm back baby! I've been focusing on writing projects for other fandoms, namely A Realm Divided for Paladins, but there's been a short lull and I figure it's time to get back into TF2 fanfic writing. This is a fun little series that focuses on the lighthearted but still murderous adventures of a little gang of botkilling mercs that featured in my previous stories, The Good, The Bad, and The Robotic as well as Fear Is What Drives Us.**

 **I really hope you'll enjoy! As always, the lovely BLU Medic belongs to the lovely Derwen!**

Fighting. Day in, day out, fighting was the most common thing to occur on Teufort - or any of Mann Co.'s territory anyway. Every weekday, sometimes on the weekends, blood would be shed, insults flung across the two bases, rockets exploding, bullets whizzing, fire blazing, screams dying. It was all very normal.

But now, the bases of RED and BLU were both quiet. Outside was silent, say for the quiet echo of the water in the sewers below and the chatter of the two forts.

It was some time in the middle of December, snow falling outside. Teufort did not see snow often, but the plush, pristine blankets of snow outside were a welcome change.

Miss Pauling's heels clacked on the wooden floor of RED's base as she came through. Normally, her steps were quick and rushed for she always had other things that had to be attended to, but not here. Her gait was relaxed and regular, indicating little rush to be elsewhere.

She found RED scattered around the base as usual - hardly were they ever found together unless having a meeting or being yelled at by Spy or Soldier.

Sniper and Scout sat at the table, the former drinking coffee while reading the newspapers and Scout shoving spoonful after spoonful of cereal into his mouth, drops of milk flying everywhere.

Demoman was watching something on the tiny television they had with Pyro. Ah, RED's Pyro was a bit of curiousity. Instead of keeping his identity too much as a secret, he was open about it, often being found in casual clothes instead of his fie-retardant suit and rubber mask.

Soldier, Engineer, Heavy, Medic, and Spy were nowhere to be seen. Miss Pauling assumed them to be doing their own things. She guessed Engineer to be in his workshop, Medic in his office, and Soldier somewhere exercising or polishing his rocket launcher, but she just needed to talk to someone she could actually trust with passing on a message to the rest of the team.

Deciding she didn't want to go hunting for Spy, nor did she want to bother Engineer or Medic, she approached the unmasked Pyro instead, lightly placing her hand on his shoulder.

"Hey Pyro, can I talk to you for a moment?" Miss Pauling asked.

Pyro turned to her, too absorbed in the movie he was watching with Demoman to have noticed her arrival earlier. He stood, having to look down at his much-shorter boss. "Hey Miss P. What's up?" He asked, letting her pull him away from the movie for a moment.

She handed him a letter encased in a white envelope. The envelope had the Team Fortress Industries logo stamped on the front, indicating that it came right from the Administrator.

"Have the entire team read the letter," Miss Pauling explained briefly. She didn't say more after that. "Well, I have to go. Still have work to do and I'd like to get back to my office before the snow gets heavier. Merry Christmas, guys," She greeted, getting a chorus of replies before she left.

Pyro looked down at the envelope, carefully opening it and pulling out the letter inside.

 _Dear RED,_

 _As per your contract states, you are given a two week break effectively immediately. Your break ends on December 26th and you are expected to return from your break promptly and be battle-ready on the 27th._

 _In this time, respawn systems will be offline for maintenance. So please, do not kill each other in that time. You are allowed to leave the base during the break._

 _Merry Christmas._

 _Regards,_

 _The Administrator_

Pyro passed the letter to Demoman, who had realised that he wasn't watching the movie anymore. Demoman scanned over the letter, whooping in delight.

"Yes! I can finally go back tae me mum!" Demoman whooped, slapping Pyro on the back and nearly flinging the smaller man to the floor with the force. "Wot about ye boy? Where ye gonna go?" He asked.

Pyro scratched the back of his head. "I… don't know? I guess I'll check with the bots if they want to go anywhere."

Demoman raised an eyebrow. "The bots? Why'd they wanna go anywhere?"

The bots included a Sniperbot by the name of Makina who usually lived in a shed on the outskirts of Teufort but had returned to RED's base when the snow came in, and Medibot, who lived over at BLU and studied a lot. They were both sentient and capable of recognising and experiencing human emotion and feeling, and for the last year and a half had been friends with some members of RED and BLU.

They became involved with the matters of RED and BLU when the RED Pyro and BLU Medic were captured by Grey Mann as part of some sick experiment, and the bots enlisted the help of the mercenaries to gain freedom.

The Administrator had reluctantly let the robots stay, as long as they stayed out of the matters of the eternal battle.

Pyro called the whole RED team to the rec room, the team slowly gaining news that Miss Pauling had come in with a letter. The whole team of nine gathered around the table, Pyro passing the letter to a hooded Spy to read out while while to keep Soldier from ripping it out of his hands.

Spy red out the letter - a Christmas break was a regular thing, but sometimes the mercenaries got so absorbed in work they forgot about their sanctioned break.

Engineer took off his hard hat, scratching his head for a moment. "Well hell, I might take the time to go home to Irene and see how she's doing."

Demoman chimed in with his ideas of going home to his mother too.

The team exploded into chatter about where they were going to go, but Pyro said little. He had no family outside of his brothers in arms, but he sure as hell had no plans to stay in during the break.

But then he had an idea. He had friends from BLU, connections he gained during the hard months of fighting Grey Mann. He figured it was time to get the team of robot-fighting men back together and head out for a bit of a trip over the holiday.

Pyro pulled Engineer, Spy and Demoman aside, excited to pitch his idea to them. "Guys, I just had a great idea. What if we get the BLU Medic and Heavy to join us on a trip? And the robots? It's been awhile since we got to hang out as friends."

Spy scoffed. "Do you really think the Administrator would allow us to interact as friends across teams? She wouldn't care less about the robots, but we are not supposed to be friends with BLU," He stated.

Pyro shrugged. "She doesn't have to know."

Engineer mulled over the idea for awhile. "I mean, I wouldn't mind having a little get together. Pyro's right, the lady doesn't have to know. And if I can bring y'all to my home and let y'all eat some real southern barbecue, that'll be a real treat."

Demoman hopped on it too. "Aye, been awhile since we got tae hang with the BLUs. Don't like 'em on the field but we're friends, aye?"

Spy rolled his eyes, still resisting the idea. "You cannot be friends with them just because we spent time together. It happened out of need and circumstance."

Pyro kept pushing the idea. "Come on, they saved your life before. And you got that shiny new revolver of yours because Heavy could pry open the doors at Hale's office, remember?"

Spy did remember. Very well, actually. The group had been on the run from Grey Mann at the time and needed new weapons after theirs were taken by the now-dead tyrant. Heavy had to punch two point five thousand pounds of pressure into a sensor to get the door open. Medibot had helped by finding a pedastel, which the BLU Heavy used as a battering ram. The revolver Spy looted from the room was one of his most prized possessions now.

After a moment, Spy relented with a huff. "Fine. Truth be told, I'll be glad for the break. Maybe you can have Makina bring the message to the BLUs."

It was a plan. Pyro excitedly ran off to find the Sniperbot, who idled away in a corner. Makina had changed the most since his arrival at Mann Co. His metal was polished and shining, all internal processors and parts replaced with high quality stuff. His arm no longer came loose (though he could dislodge it at will and swing it at someone if needed), and his LED eyes changed colour according to whatever he was feeling. It had taken months to get accustomed to all these new feelings and emotions, but he was getting the hang of it.

When Pyro stepped in front of the robot, the bot's dim eyes brightened as his motion sensors detected someone in proximity. The robot whirred to life again, eyeing Pyro.

 _"Hello Pyro,"_ Makina greeted, his eyes slowly turning orange with curiousity at the Pyro's sudden appearance.

"Hey Makina. The Admin gave us a two week break for Christmas. Spy, Engi, Demo and I wanted you, Medibot, and BLU's Medic and Heavy to come with. Just like old times," Pyro pitched to the Sniperbot.

Makina's eyes turned pale blue as he considered it. Then, he agreed. _"Sure. But I thought RED and BLU cannot interact outside of battle?"_

"That's exactly why I need you to go over and talk to BLU," Pyro easily stated.

Makina and Medibot were granted free range of Teufort outside of battle as long as they were not passing information from one base to another. Makina nodded. _"I'll do it."_

Pyro clapped his hands in glee, excited to tell the rest of the REDs that the plan was in motion. "Tell them tomorrow, 5am we'll meet at the road exit heading towards downtown Teufort. I got a great idea on where we can go!"

Pyro was gone before Makina could clarify where they were going, only hearing Pyro shout for Makina to tell BLU to pack for cold weather and a long trip.

Makina left for BLU immediately, marching right through the snow and leaving tracks as he went. The usually bloodstained area was covered in a thick layer of pristine snow, and Teufort really looked beautiful like this.

Makina's eyes went white. He had never felt like this before, looking out into the quiet base. The sun reflected off icicles and the water that slowly dripped on them. There was no chaos, no fighting. It felt really nice.

On his HUD blinked a new word. "Peaceful", it read. He was feeling peaceful. It felt really nice, but the peace melted into warmth as Makina entered BLU's base and headed straight for the Medic's office.

Medibot had made his office with the BLU Medic, studying and experimenting on all kinds of things. Where the BLU was more interested in physical things, Medibot was very much into medicine and the science and chemistry behind it.

The BLU Medic was sipping on a steaming cup of tea at his desk inside the office that linked to the infirmary. Next to him a stack of papers lay and he scribbled with one hand.

 _"Hey Medic,"_ Makina greeted, approaching the BLU.

The Medic looked up in surprise for a moment, before offering a smile in greeting. "Hello, Herr Makina. Vhat are you here for?" He asked.

 _"I need to talk to you, Heavy, and the Doc. Can you gather them for me?"_ Makina asked.

The Medic glanced around. "Medibot just vent outside to collect some parcels. He should be back soon. You can send Mediboy a message to call for Heavy too, ja? I have some work to do before the holiday break."

Right, Makina was capable of sending messages internally. He quickly typed up a message to Medibot, the only indication being a light whirr coming from him. In not more than a few minutes, Medibot rolled in with Heavy, both of them holding several boxes.

While Makina was friends with the few mercenaries he worked with only, Medibot was friends with most if not all of BLU. He only couldn't find himself interacting too much with the new BLU Scout, given what happened in the past regarding him and the ex BLU Scout. The one he couldn't save fron death.

Heavy was chatting with Medibot as he set down a massive box. Makina couldn't help but approach with interest.

 _"Hey Doc, hey Heavy. What's in the box?"_ Makina asked, peering in as Heavy cut open the tape sealing the cardboard box shut.

Medibot excitedly dove his hands into the box the second it was open, styrofoam packing peanuts flying everywhere.

 _"Ah, just as vell you're here, Herr Makina!"_ Medibot exclaimed, _"I have somezhing for you."_

He pulled out a strange device. It was about a metre tall and maybe a little over half a metre wide.

 _"Zhis is just a new charging station I had ordered. Not vhat I was going to give you,"_ Medibot explained as he handed a nicely wrapped box to Makina.

 _"Christmas is coming, and I vas going to vait to give zhis to you, but I figure since you're here, I might as vell give it to you now. Go on, open it!"_ The metal doctor prompted.

Makina sat down and opened it, finding three pieces of a weapon cleverly clipped together. He pulled the pieces out, assembling it together.

He was greeted by a beautifully made sniper rifle that could be taken apart for easier storage and quickly assembled again. It was well made, and had Makina's name engraved into the side of the barrel.

 _"Wow,"_ Makina breathed, _"this is really nice. Thanks Doc."_ He suddenly realised that he hadn't gotten anything for his best friend, but Medibot said nothing about it.

 _"You're very welcome, Herr Makina. Now, vhat is it you vanted to tell us?"_ He asked.

Remembering the reason why he was here over at BLU, Makina explained the plan to Medic, Heavy, and Medibot.

Medic couldn't help but smile. "Vell, I'd love to go for a vacation vith zhem. I suppose zhe Administrator doesn't have to know. But vhere are ve going?"

Makina shrugged. _"Who knows? Pyro just said to pack for cold weather is all. Meet us at the road exit towards downtown Teufort at 5am tomorrow."_

Heavy smiled. "Do not worry. Heavy always have clothes for cold weather. If doktor need, Heavy will bring extra coat."

Makina thanked Medibot once more for the rifle before disappearing back to RED. He wondered along the way where they were going, hoping that wherever it was, it would be a nice place.


	2. Marseille

The rest of the team had the same idea of leaving early. Many of them spent their first day of break booking flights, packing, making arrangements and the like.

And for some unknown for mutually understood reason, RED began to use each other's names instead of classes. No one was sure why, but it felt right as they said their goodbyes before leaving.

Some time around three in the morning RED's base came alive. One mercenary would spend some time making last minute checks, making coffee, before they left and the base went quiet once more.

Sniper was the first to leave followed by Soldier, before Engineer, Pyro, Spy, Demoman, and Makina awoke in the RED base somewhere past four in the morning.

Pyro dragged himself to the shower, finding someone already showering in one of the stalls. The firebug just yawned, slipping into one of the other stalls and letting the hot water and steam chase away the cold.

When he got out of the stall, he found Spy buttoning up his undershirt at the mirror. "Hey Spy," Pyro muttered through a yawn as he vigorously rubbed his hair with a towel, flicking water everywhere.

Spy shied away from the tiny drops of water that went everywhere. "Good morning Pyro," He greeted in return, shrugging on his suit jacket. "I'm going to make coffee. Do you want some?" He asked.

Rarely did Spy offer things like this, but he and Pyro were close friends. A strange dynamic, but no one said much about it.

Pyro eyed him. "Yeah, I'll get a cup." Spy nodded and left the bathroom, greeting Engineer as the Texan came in to shower, whistling a little tune.

Spy made enough coffee for the group of REDs he was leaving with. Pouring himself an aromatic cup, he headed back to his smoke room to pull his luggage out.

While he packed enough for the two weeks, it all fit into one luggage trolley for he folded everything and used every bit of space he had. The luggage was locked with his thumbprint. No simple passwords.

He kept his gun and a pure ceramic knife in his jacket, already having plans on getting his weapons through security.

Pyro and Engineer joined him outside soon, followed by Demoman and Makina. They rolled their luggage out to leave by the recreation room door, a small, not-so-neat row of luggage bags of all sorts lying around.

Peering out of the window, Makina saw BLU's base dimly lit too, some figures moving about in the dark. He figured BLU was going places too.

RED's Medic had awoken as the group of REDs were leaving. They wished their Medic goodbye and merry Christmas before leaving, bringing their luggage with them.

As they walked towards the road exit, Spy pulled up his coat a bit further and Pyro flipped up his hoodie. Engineer and Demoman had scarves to keep out the cold.

As they got nearer, they found the BLU Medic, Heavy, and Medibot waiting for them by a car, but it didn't loom big enough to fit all of them.

Pyro did not care, running up to the Medic. "Horst!" He called out, getting a smile from the doctor as the Pyro ran up.

"Good to see you Axel," Horst mentioned. The rest of the former botkiller team came up. Engineer had gone to get his truck around.

"A pleasure indeed," Spy mentioned, shaking hands with the BLUs, though his palm nearly got crushed by the Heavy's iron grip.

"Alexandre," Horst greeted. "I heard zhat you decided vhere ve vould be going."

Spy smiled softly through a cigarette. "It wasn't just me. We've planned to go multiple places. But our first stop is to my home, Marseille."

"Yeah!" Axel chimed in, bouncing like a kid. A rumble got closer and a pair of headlights shone as Engineer pulled up in his truck. The robots would sit in the back of the truck with Engineer driving and Demoman riding shotgun, while in Horst's car Alexandre would ride up front and Heavy would sit in the back with Axel, who was just a little smaller than Demoman.

They got into their respective rides, Alexandre looking behind him at Heavy and Axel in the back. There was space for one more, and he sighed.

Engineer drove off first, Horst following the truck behind. The Medic noticed Spy looking a little deflated. He knew why.

"He vould have loved to be here," Horst commented, referring to Spy's son and former BLU Scout Zack, who died when shot by Olivia and Medibot had no medigun to save him.

Spy smiled. "Yes, he would have. It's a shame he can't be here to come with us."

"He is here in spirit as long as you believe he is, ja? Zhey never truly leave us," Horst replied.

Spy leaned against the window of the car, staring out. "Thank you," He quietly muttered. Horst said nothing in return but a hum of acknowledgement.

The drive to the airport was a little over an hour long. The mercenaries chat throughout the way, catching up even though they saw each other every day on the battlefield. They were no longer on opposing teams. They were friends, family.

When they got to the airport, they parked the car and the truck before heading into the airport. It was nothing fancy. If anything, it was more practical than decorative and pretty. Lit up signs were plain and directed people all over the place.

Around them people buzzed, absorbed in their own worlds and their own plans, hardly stopping for a moment to look at the strange group of people. Makina and Medibot had used Spy's disguise kit to look like normal people.

They got through customs easily, but their weapons on hand did not clear with as much ease. Almost all of them except for the robots, Pyro and Engineer were stopped.

Spy got away producing a pocket watch near his revolver, getting off with a grunt from the security officer not to bring such things on hand in the future. He was also questioned about his mask, which he also got away with using the routine excuse of an injury and faking being embarrassed about it.

The rest wriggled out of questioning with simple answers, usually keeping a harmless metal object near their weapons on hand. Axel cleared security with no issues, for his only weapons were his hands and the flames that came from them.

They made it past, but the robots were complaining about their disguises. Spy hushed them, telling them that it was only temporary.

Spy had booked first class seats on a fairly empty plane. No overbooking would happen if Spy was the one in charge of buying tickets, and they had more than enough money to do so.

The robots sat together, still in their disguises, while the rest spread out considerably. Engineer and Demoman sat together as did Axel and Horst, and Spy sat on his own.

They were offered a selection of wine and champagne, which none of them refused though Demoman was a little disappointed at the lack of strength in the alcohol.

They slept, ate, and played cards throughout the fifteen hour flight, and when they flew over France, it twinkled like a jewel in the night below them.

Spy stretched his legs, delighted to be home. Well, he hadn't been to France in quite a few years, but it was always home no matter how long he went.

As the plane began its descent, he figured now would be a good time to talk to the rest about what they could and could not do.

"So we are in my hometown and I've chosen to be very generous and book one of the nicest hotels I could find. Please, for the love of God do not do anything stupid. And let me do the talking. Disguises for the robots can come off once we're off the plane. Everyone understand?" Spy asked.

There was a chorus of varying levels of agreement from everyone, but Spy was satisfied with the general response and sat back in his seat.

There was still another hour before landing and the plane began to circle as it awaited approval to land. In the time, a pretty stewardess came to offer them more alcohol.

"Can I get the whole bottle?" Demoman asked a surprised stewardess. She called over a senior steward to ask.

"It's an unusual request sir..." The steward began, "the bottle is incredibly expensiv-"

Demoman smacked a handful of hundred dollar bills, more than enough to pay for the entire bottle. Quietly, the steward collected the money and split half with the stewardess before she left the entire bottle at Demoman's table and left without another word.

The bottle was empty in a flat 30 seconds.

As the Scot put down the bottle and licked his lips, he noticed the rest of the group staring at him in a mix of awe, horror, and disgust.

"Wot?" Demoman asked, not understanding why everyone was staring at him.

Axel snickered, "That's impressive."

Spy shot him a look of pure disgust. Champagne was meant to be slowly sipped on and enjoyed, not chugged like some crude vodka or beer or scrumpy.

"Please," Spy muttered, "try not to be so barbaric." He turned away from the Scotsman, trying to enjoy the rest of the flight.

After another twenty minutes of circling, the plane was finally given approval to land. The plane began its controlled descent, barely anything felt as the plane came in contact with the ground. Below in the economy deck, people began to clap.

 _"Why do they do that?"_ Makina asked, half mockingly.

 _"I believe it is because flying a plane is hard vork. Zhey may be congratulating zhe pilot on conquering such a hard task and getting zhem to zheir destination safely,"_ Medibot predicted. But he could be wrong. Humans were hard to predict at times.

Makina's disguised eyes turned a quizzical purple, but said nothing more.

Spy gracefully rose from his seat, while Horst complained a little about how sitting for too long did nothing good for his old bones. "Gentlemen, we are in my hometown. Please act like you usually don't. Which is to say, act like normal people." He turned and sauntered out, kissing the hands of two very pretty stewardesses, who blushed at his charm.

Getting out of the airport was a nightmare. Marseille was a lot more crowded than everyone except Spy expected, and they were caught up in the push and pulls of the crowd like a struggling swimmer against the tides.

Spy had no issue navigating the crowd and finding the quickest but least blocked route, but found himself having to stop every few steps to make sure his friends hadn't disappeared.

Retrieving their luggage was also hard, with the sheer number of bags and trolleys and people all around trying to grab their things.

At some point while waiting for his luggage to come around, a rude local shoved past Axel and swore at him in French to grab his bag. Spy eyed him to see what he would do about it.

While tempted to just burn the man himself, Axel figured he'd kick up too much of a fuss. Instead, he burned the lock holding the suitcase open and melted part of the zip before the Frenchman stalked off. He didn't get three steps before the suitcase fell open and its contents emptied. More French curses were shouted as the man tried to grab all his things and shove them back in his case.

Spy noticed something among the man's belongings. He left his luggage with Makina before coming over, bending down to pick up a tiny ziplock bag of white powder.

Spy knew exactly what that was. As soon as the other man noticed that he had it, he started screaming in French, lunging for Spy who swiftly side stepped the sudden attack, watching the man fall to the floor.

The shouting attracted a group of police officers, who came running up as Makina grabbed the screaming man, his disguise shimmering away. He held the man tight to make sure he couldn't run off.

Spy beckoned for the two Medics they had to come forward. Medibot took the packet and scanned it, his disguise fading too. There were four police officers eyeing him and waiting for him to say something.

 _"Benzoylmethylecgonine. Or 'cocaine' as you humans call it,"_ Medibot concluded. _"30 grams of it."_

Makina was still holding tight to the thrashing offender, who could do nothing to wriggle out of the robot's steel grasp.

"Is it true?" One of the officers asked.

"Oui. He is a doctor," Spy confirmed as the sealed bag was passed from Medibot to the officers. One of the other officers tried to find a way to handcuff the offender while in Makina's grasp, but eventually asked the Sniperbot to pin him to the ground to make it easier. There was no way the criminal could get up with the foot of a two hundred pound robot on his back.

The officers thanked Makina, Medibot and Spy before hauling the man off.

Axel crossed his arms. "What, I get no credit for that?" He pouted, though he was exaggerating a little. Spy smirked.

"You would have gotten arrested if they found that you were going about burning people's things," He muttered, nudging the Pyro in the shoulder.

They continued into the sea of people going about the airport, almost having to fight their way out. They all took a breath once they managed to get out of the doors and into the taxi stand, but the relief didn't last as the group saw the queue of people waiting for a cab. It snaked for over a hundred metres, and some people looked a little annoyed at having waited so long.

"Oh no, ve are not vaiting for _zhat,_ " Horst scowled at the queue.

Spy laughed. "Do you think I would make you wait for a taxi after flying first class? Non, I rented a car." He snaked through the crowd and headed into the airport's carpark, searching the rows of cars until he found the license plate given to him.

It was a pretty, luxury car, almost a limousine but not quite there yet. Still, it was a luxury car and it was not something many of the mercenaries had the chance to ride before.

Spy slid into the driver's seat, the rest having more than enough room in the back. He wasted no time in driving off, excited to show the rest the room he had booked.

It wasn't a challenge to drive to his neighbourhood, but he passed it in search of their hotel. That too wasn't hard, for it stood tall and shining against the city.

It seemed like Spy was on full-professionalism mode, for when he parked the car, he reminded the rest, "This is a fancy place, so don't act like how you usually do. And let me do the talking." Without another word, he exited, greeting the bellmen in French as they came over to bring their luggage in. He didn't need to speak French, given that the hotel was popular among international guests, but it made him feel a little more home. And perhaps later in other countries, he'd try to sharpen his skills in other languages.

As Spy booked in, the rest were wandering around. A few people stared at Makina and Medibot, curious about them though they didn't seem frightened. In fact, people were so busy that they went unnoticed. Spy however, didn't slip by so easily.

"Excuse me sir, but I'm afraid you'll have to take off the mask," The lady at the reception mentioned quietly.

Spy always had a way about dodging the question. A spy never revealed his identity. "Ah, I'm afraid I cannot. I sustained some injuries during an accident…" He trailed off, as if embarrassed to talk about it.

She quickly lowered her head, ashamed to have asked such a personal thing. "Oh- I am so sorry sir, I'll have you booked in right away."

The receptionist produced a set of eight key cards, all of which would access the same room. Spy handed out the key cards to the rest of them, keeping one for himself. He ushered them from the golden lobby to the lifts before anyone else questioned them.

Their room was on the top floor, a presidential suite with more than enough room for all of them. There was a kitchen - not that any of them would use it, a massive television set, even a balcony with another dining table. The whole thing was lit by a beautiful chandelier, and suddenly Spy was very worried about how it was going to turn out by the time they left.

"Vell now, zhis is all very fancy. How much did it cost?" Horst couldn't help but ask as he sank into one of the chairs by the television.

Makina's eyes turned a deep pink. He had helped Spy with the booking of the hotels for a few of the destinations. _"Maybe it's best if we don't tell you that."_

"Expensive, is all I will say," Spy chipped in, "if we are to be in my hometown, then I choose to impress."

Axel and Demoman instantly darted around, looking for the best room in the area. Medibot rolled up to one of the windows, admiring the view of the harbour below, where lots of yachts floated and bobbed on the glimmering sea. He was entranced by the gorgeous view, and Makina joined him at the window to admire the night view.

Spy went around to find a room to claim, taking a brief walk about the suite to identify exits and possible entrances should anything go wrong. And with the mercs around, something was bound to go wrong.

He claimed a bedroom with a queen size bed and an en-suite bathroom. The bathroom had a view of the harbour too, but the window was darkened to prevent people outside from looking in.

As Spy unlocked his luggage, Axel poked his head in. "Hey Alexandre, are we going out tonight?" The firebug asked.

Spy looked up. He considered taking a hot shower and relaxing, but the night was still young and he figured he could take them to try real French cuisine. The good stuff.

"Oui. Try to dress a little nicer, if you're capable of it," Spy instructed. Axel grinned and ran off, calling for the rest to change.

Spy was already in his suit like always and did not need to change, but he shrugged off his suit jacket and carried it with him instead. He already had an idea on where he wanted to bring them, which was a little more casual but likely fancier than the other mercs had ever been.

He expected Horst to dress well, and he did not fail, opting for a blazer over his button up instead of his work coat. Demoman came as a surprise however, dressed rather sharply in a button up, jacket, and a tasteful red scarf for a pop of colour.

"I must say, the drunk has surprised me already. I expected you to dress like you always do. Which is to say, sloppy," Spy commented.

Demoman was proud of himself. To receive a compliment from Spy was like winning all the money in the world. "Aye, me mum always told me if I were to some fancy schmancy place, better look the part."

Heavy dressed well too, a white button-up topped with a heavy coat with bear fur.

Axel and Engineer did not try too hard, which Spy expected. Axel just had a coat that wasn't a hoodie on, and Engineer added a scarf and replaced his overall with a comfy pair of pants.

The Pyro rolled his eyes. "My mom told me to just show that you have cash. No one gives a damn what you're wearing after that."

He was true, of course, as everyone saw on the plane with Demoman buying a $400 bottle of champagne without blinking.

"Alright, stop bickering," Spy said firmly, "robots, are you coming with us?"

Makina nudged Medibot to see if he wanted to come. _"Vell, ve can't eat but I'd love to come anyvay,"_ Medibot mentioned. Recently he had learned this thing humans called cooking. It looked very interesting, and Medibot was keen to learn. Makina agreed to come too, figuring maybe he could unlock a couple of new emotions out in a new environment.

Spy brought them out of the hotel, but before they left he noticed a man shouting at the pretty receptionist that had served them earlier in the night when they booked in.

"Vhat is going on?" Horst asked, peering over.

Spy frowned. "Wait here," He instructed to the group before walking over. As he got closer, the man threw a ring at the receptionist and demanded that she wear it.

Spy stepped between her and the furious man - her husband, he assumed, for he had a matching ring around his finger. "Sir, do not throw things at staff," Spy growled.

"Who the hell are you? Her lover? Stay the fuck out of my way frog," He spat. Spy was very tempted to take out his knife.

"I'm a person who won't stand to see someone get abused by you," Spy replied evenly.

Makina figured the man wasn't going to stop but Spy couldn't draw his weapon in a crowded hotel lobby, so he and Medibot came up to back Spy.

The man's face dropped in shock at the two robots for a second, but he attempted to regain his composure. His attempt immediately failed when Medibot rolled forwardly threateningly and the gatling gun in him popped out of his shoulder and began to whirr.

"Okay, okay! Bloody bastard," He spat. Looking beyond the robots and at the woman, he pointed a finger at her. "I want to see you wearing the fucking ring when I come back or I'll do what I did last time!" With that, the man stalked out, accompanied by Medibot with his gun still active until the man got into a cab and drove off.

Medibot rolled back, tilting his head at the rest who hoped no one was going to call the police at having revealed a weapon. _"Vhat?"_

 _"I didn't know you had it in you, Doc,"_ Makina commented. Behind them, Spy spoke to the receptionist.

 _"Oh, zhat's nozhing. My job is to protect. From all forms of harm, I suppose,"_ Medibot replied. He noticed Spy slip the receptionist a piece of paper before he took the ring that the man had thrown at her and thanking her.

"What was that?" Heavy asked.

Spy pocketed the ring. It was the receptionist's wedding ring. "She revealed to me that that was her abusive husband. She has tried to file a divorce but apparently he is part of a gang that won't let her divorce."

Engineer shook his head. As a faithful and loving husband himself, he hated nothing more than domestic violence. "I reckon we could pay him a visit," He mentioned thoughtfully.

Axel grinned. "Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?"

The idea to kill the receptionist's abusive husband and his gang rippled through the group wordlessly. Spy straightened his jacket. "Yes."


End file.
